EM- Law Enforcement

EM- Law Enforcement

three main changes to law enforcement from medieval to EM

• nightwatchmen

• sergeants

• thief takers

how did population grow from Medieval to EM (numbers)

grew from 2.5 mil to 6 mil

what did increase in population mean for crime

• increase in crime as more people and easier to get away with

• more opportunities for crime as growing businesses and increased wealth

• more people moving to towns and cities meant that more people struggled so had to turn to crime

NIGHTWATCHMEN- what did they do

• employed in larger towns to patrol streets day and night

• mainly arrested drunks and vagabonds

• had the right to peer into windows to make sure people weren’t breaking the law

• would carry a lamp and ring a bell to warn people to go home

NIGHTWATCHMEN- factors for change

population increase= more people so more crime so people needed to enforce

NIGHTWATCHMEN- how is this also continuity

also existed in the medieval period but there now more of them

NIGHTWATCHMEN- who would serve as one

all householders expected to serve as nightwatchmen

SERGEANTS- what did they do

• employed in towns to enforce market regulations by weighing goods and collecting fines from traders who behaved badly

SERGEANTS- what nickname did they get, when and why

• Charlies

• 1663

• Charles II set up a force of paid watchmen to patrol the streets in all towns and cities

SERGEANTS- were they respected and evidence for or against this

• no

• became objects of fun and children baited them

SERGEANTS- factors for change

• economic growth= more people in a town meant there were more merchants as there were more people to buy their goods so sergeants needed to manage this

• role of king= Charles II set up the force of paid watchmen

THIEF TAKERS- what did they do

• more serious crimes

• paid a reward for capturing a criminal and delivering them to the war

THIEF TAKERS- why were they needed

constables and watchmen weren’t effective at hunting criminals

THIEF TAKERS- was it effective

could be but also up to corruption e.g. Jonathan Wild

THIEF TAKERS- factors for change

• increased population= more people committing crime and also more serious crimes as not a close-knit community anymore so need to be caught

CONTINUITY- law enforcement

• hue and cry

• parish constables

• ordinary people

• JPs

what changed about the hue and cry

constable led it

PARISH CONSTABLES- what was their role

main defence against crime and existed in Medieval period

PARISH CONSTABLES- what did they do

• had no weapons or uniform; part time job

• dealt mainly with everyday crimes and had power to inflict minor punishment (e.g. whipping vagabonds)

• main role to ensure suspects held in prison until their trial and help with local administrative issues like collecting payments for road cleaning

what were ordinary people expected to do to enforce crime

expected to deal with most crimes themselves and the actions of local communities

CHANGE- role of ordinary people in law enforcement

if someone was robbed, then they had to get the arrest warrant from a magistrate, track down the criminal and deliver them to the constable

JPs- how has their importance changed

during the Tudor Period they became key to local law enforcement

JPs- who would they be

someone of importance locally, like a wealthy landowner who took the job for prestige

JPs- what did they do

• judged manor court cases

• could fine people

• send people to the stocks/pillory

• order whippings

TRIALS- two changes from Medieval to EM

• Manor courts

• Habeus Corpus Act

MANOR COURTS- who ran them and what did they do

• run by JPs

• dealt with minor crimes like selling underweight bread

MANOR COURTS- why did benefit of the clergy change

• by 1600s too many people could claim it due to literacy rates increasing so the law changed meaning it couldn’t be claimed for more serious crimes

MANOR COURTS- factors for change

• education increase= more people literate so had to change the law to be fair so people couldn’t just claim benefit of the clergy to get lesser punishments

• wealth increase= more people have the money to be able to afford education and more money being put into it

HABEUS CORPUS ACT- when

1679

HABEUS CORPUS ACT- what did it do

• prevented authorities from locking a person up indefinitely without charge

• once arrested, they had to appear in court within a certain time or be released

HABEUS CORPUS ACT- what bad acts didn’t it stop from happening

didn’t stop officials from making up evidence at trials to lock up critics/opposition so therefore an ineffective law

HABEUS CORPUS ACT- factors for change

• role of gov- they made the law

• changing societal attitudes= realised the previous system flawed so therefore tried to fix it

TRIALS- 4 things that have continued

• most cases dealt with locally

• four times a year, JPs in each county met up

• County assizes

• church courts

what did JPs do when they met up four times a year

allowed them to judge more serious cases, including being able to sentence someone to death

COUNTY ASSIZES- what happened at them

• royal judge would visit each county to deal with the most serious offences

COUNTY ASSIZES- change

these gradually replaced by the Justices of the Eyre

what did church courts deal with

crimes committed by churchmen or anyone who could claim benefit of the clergy